A Vision Journal Cover, A Turning Point

Awareness, letting go, healing the past & releasing what no longer belongs.

Hello friends,

I love making vision journals—just like vision boards, but with even more room to dream, reflect, and play. These journals become a living canvas for your hopes, intentions, and inspirations. You can decorate the inside covers, tuck in favorite quotes, and fill the pages with images, words, and textures that speak to your heart. I usually protect the outside covers with clear shelf liner from the Dollar Store so they hold up over time—because these journals are meant to be cherished and revisited.
I’ve been making vision journals since 1996! Here’s a sampling of a few.

What I discovered this week is that making a vision journal cover can also be deeply healing.

Let me explain.

I recently completed a journal cover as part of a project in Julie Daniluk’s 6-month Transformation Program, which I’ve been participating in. It's been a meaningful journey—both creatively and emotionally. While working on this piece, I bumped into an old familiar theme: perfectionism.

I challenged myself to use only supplies I already had on hand. I pulled out a notebook that already held a few pages of scribbles—mostly drawings from my granddaughters when they were little. At first, I wondered if I should remove them, start fresh. But something stopped me. Why would I erase that sweetness? Instead, I’ve decided to carry those pages forward with me—just like I carry the past. Maybe I’ll even color them during one of my quiet morning times.

Then came the wrinkles—literally. I used white glue instead of a glue stick, and the pages crinkled. But I let it be. A little creative imperfection, a lot of letting go.

🎨 I’ve decided to use this journal as an art journal too. It has sweet little pockets, and I tucked a love letter to myself—written earlier in the program—into one of them. A pink envelope holding space for future moments when I might need to be reminded of my own kindness.

As I gathered words for my Vitality Mission Statement, I chose a few to feature on the journal cover. One of them? “Self Talk Matters.” And wow, did that theme arrive with full force.

After a session in another group I belong to—The Art of Awareness—I had a wake-up moment. I realized I’ve been narrating the same exhausting story to myself: I’m just so tired. Over and over. I’ve said it for months. If I can just get through this... then I’ll be okay. After the service for my mom. After my trip to Italy. After, after, after.

But here’s the truth: I have every reason to be tired. The past three years have been caregiver-heavy. I’ve had to set new boundaries, let go of resentment, grieve the loss of my mom. It’s been hard, sacred, necessary work. And yes, it’s been heavy.

But I’m also becoming more aware of how my words are shaping my experience.

🌀 Self Talk Matters.

Telling myself the same old story—I’m just so tired—has been keeping me stuck in it.

So today, I welcome all of it—my resentment, my impatience, my tiredness, my busyness. I embrace it with compassion. It has served me in many ways. But I’m ready to release it.

Because…

✨ I’m going to Italy and Sicily—for 15 days! ✨
(Just got shivers again writing that.) I tried to find the Italian flag emoji, but all I got was a plate of pasta. 🍝 Okay then—here’s to pasta in Italy!

I will not stay stuck in my weariness.
I will not let the experience of a lifetime pass me by.

Today is a day of reckoning.
A turning point.
A return to joy.

Try This: Create a vision journal cover using supplies you already have on hand. If you’re like me, you’ll have more than just a few journals waiting to be cherished. Let it be imperfect. Include a word or phrase that you want to carry with you into the next season of life. I would love to know what word of phrase you included.

PS: If you’d like to know more about the teachings of Josette Diaz, the creator of The Art of Awareness, you can follow her on Substack here.